Marty's Fund

Marty Martin

A Tri-Cities, Washington, family that was stricken twice in 2007 by colon cancer has made a commitment to helping raise money for research to battle colon cancer, as well as spreading awareness about this and other types of cancer. Every Tuesday, Magill's restaurant in Pasco, Washington, donates a percentage of all sales earned to colon cancer awareness and research.

Magill's restaurant is operated by the Martin Family, whose member, Marty Martin, lost his courageous year-long battle with colon cancer on May 15, 2008. The Martin Family has been in the restaurant business for many, many years. His father, Earl and wife, Jere, in partnership with his grandfather, William Earl Martin, Sr. (Papo), owned another local establishment, the Kaddy Shak Restaurant for 12 years, after which Marty was the sole owner for 2 more years. Marty also owned three restaurants called Francisco's Restaurants, as well as several other local establishments. He proudly assisted in the opening of Magill's just two months prior to his death, providing his "expert" advice.

The family just recently opened a second location, Magill's @ The Uptown, in Richland, Washington.

Marty was diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer on May 1, 2007 at the age of 44. Shortly after his diagnosis, his younger brother, Darren, was diagnosed with stage I colon cancer, at the age of 41. It was because of Marty's diagnosis that Darren had a colonoscopy due to his increased risk for colon cancer as a sibling of someone who had the disease. Both brothers had surgery to remove their cancerous tumors. Darren had severe complications due to his initial surgery, had two more surgeries, and spent approximately 30 days in ICU. During this time, Marty began his chemotherapy treatments, oftentimes visiting Darren at Kennewick General Hospital with his portable chemo "machine" strapped to his hip. Darren is currently cancer free and working towards making the family business a success, in honor of his big brother, Marty. Assisting Darren in this business are his wife, Sheila, mother, Glenda, and sister, Brenda, along with several of the grandchildren, Cody, Jared, and Andy.

Additional fundraising efforts include the sale of blue star pins, from which 100% of the proceeds are donated to the Colon Cancer Alliance. The family also advocates daily for colon cancer awareness and screening, especially early screening for people with high risk factors.